


The Hunt

by littleotter73



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Adventure, F/M, Post-Canon, Post-Series, Romance, no comics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-12
Updated: 2019-08-01
Packaged: 2020-06-26 17:32:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19773079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littleotter73/pseuds/littleotter73
Summary: Buffy is restless, Giles suggests demon hunting in Scotland to help her scratch that itch.





	1. Part I

**Author's Note:**

> This story was written for Summer of Giles 2019
> 
> Many thanks to il_mio_capitano for all the beta work and the encouragement!

Giles watched as Buffy beat the hell out of the hapless fledgling, her two student Slayers anxiously awaiting their turn by his side to turn the vampire to dust. With the demon refusing to get up, Giles was just about to let the girls go in and finish the job when Buffy picked her victim up and started pounding away on him for the fourth time.

“Buffy!” he called, his voice ringing loud and terse through the midnight air. “Enough!”

Buffy released the vampire and he fell to the ground with an unceremonious thud. Giles signalled to the teen to his left to put the damned thing out of its misery. The young slayer gave the vampire a good kick to the ribs and he tutted his displeasure before reprimanding her, “Maria, finish him off. Just plunge and move on.”

Petulantly, Maria argued, “Aww, Mr Giles, that’s no fun. When are we going to get to actually fight a vamp?”

Buffy stomped passed him, her frustration noticeably wafting off her. “She has a point,” she growled as she started back for the Academy.

“Buffy…” he started, but held his tongue as the two junior slayers followed after her like dutiful little ducklings. It wouldn’t do to have that conversation in front of the children.

“Couldn’t we find one more vamp so I can stake one?” the other Slayer whinged as she fell back in line beside him.

Giles rolled his eyes. “I think we are done here, Penny, we’ll put you on the schedule for Tuesday and you’ll have the first dusting.”

Penny’s eyes lit up. “Okay!” she agreed and skipped to catch up with Buffy and Maria.

Buffy was in a foul mood. She couldn’t help it and she couldn’t quite put her finger on what the problem was. Part of it was that she had too much energy and not enough of an outlet to burn it all off. Everything grated on her nerves. After dropping off the young Slayers at their dorm, she headed towards the gym without saying a word to Giles. He’d follow her, that she knew. She could tell he wanted to talk to her about the incident with the vamp. She wasn’t in the mood, but it was his time if he wanted to watch her beat the heavy bag for an hour or so.

Upon entering the gym, Buffy didn’t even take the time to tape up her hands before she started taking out her frustrations on the heavy bag. Punch after punch after kick after kick, she pounded away, and as the minutes ticked by, she expected Giles to interrupt her routine and start talking. As expected, he’d followed her into the building, but he just watched as she abused the bag.

Finally she kicked it off its chain and it flew several feet towards him.

“Had enough?” he finally asked.

“No!” she spat as she paced back and forth. She’d just tired of waiting for him to say something.

Shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans, Giles leaned against the mirrored wall. “Care to talk about it?”

Buffy stopped her pacing and dropped down onto one of the weight benches. “Not really,” she replied sullenly.

Giles walked over to the opposite wall and grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and handed one to her. “What can I do to help?” he asked sincerely, his green eyes finding hers as he opened his bottle and took a sip. 

“Nothing,” she replied harshly before muttering under her breath, “unless you want to take me up against the wall and fuck me until I can’t walk.”

Giles choked, coughing as his lungs tried to expel the water that accidentally made its way down his windpipe. “Pardon?” he asked, his voice about two octaves too high.

“Ugh!” Buffy grumbled. “I seriously can’t believe you heard that!”

“I’m standing  _ right here!” _ he answered, perhaps a little too forcibly. Lowering his voice he continued. “So, yes, I heard that.”

Standing up, Buffy threw her arms up in defeat. “I don’t know, Giles. I’m… restless and I don’t know what to do! It’s like I can’t get settled. I don’t know if I need a sabbatical and go run around the world for a year or two or just literally run until I can’t anymore. It’s… ” She paced back and forth for a few passes, before letting out a growl of frustration. “I don’t know… maybe what Faith said about slaying way back when is true.”

He leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms, already annoyed at whatever interpretation Faith had placed on the Slayer experience - she had often said things for shock value, not for any real substance. Although he conceded that she knew more about being a Slayer than he did, her experience didn’t necessarily translate to Buffy’s experience or any other Slayer’s. 

“What did Faith have to say?” he asked, his tone calm and quiet.

“Maybe this is general Slayer frustration - you know, the excess energy I can’t seem to burn off. She’d said that it made her one of two things, hungry or horny. Crass, I know, but it kind of sums it up. And if it weren’t for the gym and the 3 classes of training with the younglings a day, I’d be waddling everywhere with the amount of ice cream I’ve consumed over the past few months, but that doesn’t really seem to help.” She sighed in resignation. “And if it’s not the Slayer thing, then I guess it could just be me being lonely… or maybe it’s just my biological clock is ticking.” Sitting back down, she dropped her head into her hands and let out an embarrassed sigh.

Giles gingerly sat down on the bench beside her and cleared his throat before asking, “How so?”

Straightening back up, she shook her head before explaining, “I mean, I get it, the demon population in Greater London is at an all time low since we opened the Academy and started taking the baby Slayers on patrol. But now, I only get to pummel the baddies into moderate submission-”

“With the exception of tonight,” he pointed out, the pull of the corner of his mouth into a half smile indicated he wasn’t angry with her over the incident.

“With the exception of tonight when I pummeled it with extreme prejudice,” she agreed with a sheepish smile. “But the point is, I don’t get to finish the job. I hunt, I fight, and someone else finishes off the demon… and there’s no satisfaction in that, because even then, I have to instruct them on how to kill it. I know that’s my job now, but dear god, it’s so unsatisfying! And it’s not like I can go out hunting after the girls return to the dorm because there aren’t enough demons to go around at the moment and the girls need the practice. So there is all this extra pent up energy…”

Buffy tapered off and rolled her head and shoulders. “Add the fact that I’ve been totally boyfriendless Buffy for years - not that I haven’t gone out - but it’s just such a production considering what we do. Sure I could date a Watcher, but they’re so…”

“Stuffy?” Giles supplied.

“I was going to say totally absorbed in everything slaying and supernatural.”   
  
“Ah.”

“Present company excluded, of course,” Buffy conceded. After the two of them had set up the Slayer Academy and created the framework for supporting Slayers across the globe, Giles had allowed himself time to enjoy some of his more mundane interests such as horseback and motorcycle riding, hiking, and exploring historical areas of interest around the country. Occasionally, she would accompany him on his adventures. She especially loved the motorcycle rides along the coast into Sussex and that one long ride through Devon and Cornwall. “I just want some separation, ya know? I mean, why can’t a Slayer have it all?”

He nodded. He did know. Slaying was never an all consuming passion of Buffy’s. She’d wanted some normalcy and over the years, she’d managed to find a good balance: a way to have friends and family and interests outside of her calling.

“Sex is great, don’t get me wrong, and I’ve tried to just... scratch the itch without the entanglement of a relationship in case it’s just what Faith said, but it’s hard for me to…” She looked down at her hands, unsure why she was telling Giles something so incredibly embarrassing and personal, but he seemed to be listening attentively and not shying away, so she continued, “Well, let’s just say the frustration never goes away. Sex just isn’t  _ enough. _ I need that intimacy that comes from knowing someone well and caring about them - the little quiet moments you have with someone you love. I don’t want to wake up next to a stranger and rush to get dressed and leave because you know it will just never work out.” Sighing heavily, she looked up at him plaintively. “I see couples holding hands and snuggling on my commute and kissing each other goodbye as they head to their respective offices and  _ I want that _ . And don’t even get me started on babies and little kids. I never thought that would be a part of my life or that I would even want kids after the monks dumped Dawn in my lap and Mom died leaving me as take care of her on my own, but I see parents with their cute little babies and… I really do.”

GIles sat quietly next to her deep in thought and, when she leaned her head against his shoulder, he moved to wrap an arm around her.

“I’m sorry,” she finally said, as she snuggled closer to him.

“Whatever for?” he asked, shifting to look at her, but she kept her gaze focused across the room.

“For being cranky. For making you choke and nearly drown on your water. For putting all  _ this _ on you.”

Giles hugged her to him. “I wish you had come to me earlier. Before you’d gotten to this point. Perhaps we could have made space in the schedule for the Head Slayer to get her kills in.”

Returning his hug, Buffy answered, “Sometimes it all just sneaks up on you until you just...  _ can’t _ anymore.” 

“I understand.”

“I know you do.” Peering up at him, Buffy noticed his furrowed brow. “What are you thinking?”

Taking a deep breath, he replied, “I think, perhaps, a little R&R is in order.”

“Giles…  _ extremely  _ edgy, remember? The last thing in the world I can do at the moment is rest and relax.”

“I was thinking more along the lines of riot and rampage.”

A smile spread across her lips, quickly replacing the scowl that had been set there before. “What did you have in mind?”

“There is a pack of demons terrorizing farms in southern Scotland just north of Carlisle. We could drive up there tomorrow.”

“What kind?”

“Not sure. Black and shaggy, about the size of a large bear. Very agile, very fast, extremely clever, and they hunt as a pack.”

“Sounds exciting. How did you hear about them?”

“You remember Sophie Fleming, the young Slayer who is the sole caretaker of her younger brother and sister?” He felt Buffy nod against his chest. “She and her Watcher Brigit Saunders have been unsuccessful in tracking them down and neutralizing them. Sophie did manage to kill a wounded juvenile, but Brigit doesn’t want her taking any unnecessary risks, considering her situation, so she phoned headquarters asking for assistance. I had thought to send a small team of our more senior Slayers to help, but we could pop up that way and you could take care of the problem yourself.”

“All of them for me?” she asked, her face beaming with the promise of a hard and successful hunt.   
  


“Every single one,” he promised.

“That’s so thoughtful of you,” she stated as she stood up and stretched, indicating that she was finally ready to call it a night. Maybe taking out a pack of demons would quell the other feelings: the need for intimacy, to have the love of a good, caring guy, and the desire for a snuggly baby in her arms and a cute little rugrat playing happily on the floor by her feet. Maybe it all just stemmed from the fact that the Slayer side of her just really needed a good kill.

“Yes well, it’s the least I can do,” he answered as they headed towards the exit together. “Of course, if that doesn’t help,” he stated, holding the door open for her and following her out. “I’ll just have to take you back to mine to fuck you until you are unable to leave the bed,” he continued matter-of-factly.

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks. Had she taken a sip of water at that very moment, she would have choked too.

Keeping his gate as he passed her, Giles chuckled to himself before turning along the path to his place.

\---------

“So, it seems like these beasties have a range of about 50 square miles. That’s a lot of ground to cover.” Buffy said, reading over the report Brigit had sent Giles earlier.

“If they were wolves, their territories can range from three hundred to one thousand square miles,” he rattled off the top of his head.

“If they were wolves, they wouldn’t be our problem,” Buffy returned. “I’m just glad we can rule out werewolves. Whatever they are, they’ve been active every night for a couple of weeks now.” 

“Having to factor in the human element certainly would have complicated things,” Giles agreed, keeping his eyes on the road. The traffic was heavy around Birmingham and there was still another three hours of driving to go. “Any clues on Brigit’s map as to where they might strike next?

“Nope, but she’s got all the farms highlighted and which ones have been hit so far. There are a couple of outliers, but it seems that our beasties have a taste for fine Scottish beef and lamb local to the area, so we at least have a defined perimeter.”

“Good,” Giles replied, switching lanes into one that moved a little faster. “I do wish this traffic would lighten up.”

Buffy folded up the map and groaned, placing it and the report back into the folder before putting it back in her briefcase. “I’m done. I’m starting to get a little nauseous.”

“I didn’t know you got motion sick.”

“Only when I try to read. So... what do you want to talk about?”

There was a loaded question. Ever since their conversation the evening prior, he’d not been able to get her off his mind. Lying in his bed, he’d finally admitted to himself that he could see her as more than his partner and certainly more than his Slayer. The feelings had started to stir in him during their motorcycle tour Devon and Cornwall last autumn. Buffy hadn’t had time to learn to ride, so she rode on the back of his Triumph, holding onto him and leaning into him. They’d had a fantastic time exploring the coastal towns and moors together. Nothing had happened between them, other than growing closer as friends and putting more of their complicated past, especially those last two years in Sunnydale, behind them. When they’d returned to London, the reality of running the Joint Council and the Academy and dealing with a demon crisis in Singapore from the opposite side of the globe took precedence, and by the time the vampire dust finally settled, he’d convinced himself that he’d buried any errant romantic feelings for her in the deep recesses of his mind.

Of course, his parting comment had been meant as a joke, something to break the tension, but considering his feelings, it was inappropriate and he’d agonized over it in the wee hours of the morning when he’d woken up from a deep sleep. He found his early morning fears had been unwarranted when she’d met him with a smile, two pieces of luggage more than he thought she would need, and a box of jelly donuts to share on the road.

“Did you have any interest in the place we are staying?” he finally asked.

“You’d said something about staying at a farm?”

“Yes, besides being a working farm, the owners also run a bed and breakfast. I figured you could use some pampering in between hunts,” he explained.

Her smile lifted his spirits. “That’s so thoughtful of you, thank you!”

“It’s located about ten miles across the border,” he continued. “It hasn’t been hit by the demons yet, but the owner has a fairly large herd of cattle. A farm about 5 miles further north from there was hit about a week ago.”

“So it’s just a matter of time before they come for a midnight snack.”

“Or they could be hunting on the other side of their territory.”

“Way to be an optimist, Giles,” she teased.

“Pragmatist, I should think,” he corrected, changing lanes again as the traffic seemed to be opening up. “Let’s hope for smooth sailing here on out.”

“So what? Another three and a half hours?”

“Sounds about right with a stop for petrol.”

“You had to choose the gas guzzling Range Rover.”

“The terrain calls for it, I’m afraid. That, and we can’t possibly carry all your luggage, the weapons chests, and the rest of the supplies in the Triumph’s saddlebags,” he returned, his tone holding that teasing note.

“Pity! That was a great trip, but you know I had to bring along  _ all _ my inappropriate footwear for this one. Who knows how long we’ll be out there with at least fifty square miles to cover trying to find these demons and the Louboutin slingbacks are perfect for trudging across rocky Scotish terrain.”

“I think I just tore a tendon in my ankle at the mere suggestion,” Giles replied with a laugh. 

Buffy shifted in her seat to face him, an enigmatic smile gracing her lips.

“What?” he asked as he glanced over at her.

“Nothing. Just happy to be away from the city again for a while.”

He moved his hand from the gear lever to squeeze her hand. “Me too.”

\----------

It was late afternoon when they reached the Lowry Hill neighborhood of Carlisle where the young Slayer lived with her brother and sister and her Watcher. The home had belonged to her parents before they’d been killed by the Bringers. Sophie had been found by her Watcher, squatting in the house with her siblings several months after their parents’ deaths and after the First had been defeated with the power turned off and no heat. Brigit secured Council funding and ensured that the house would belong to the siblings and that they would be able to cover their expenses and utilities.

“Nice place,” Buffy commented surveying the home and the neighborhood. It was a quiet, sleepy part of town. Safe. Until it wasn’t one day. She’d met Sophie once before when Brigit had brought her down to the Academy for a weekend workshop. Sophie had been shy, but they’d reached common ground with slaying and raising their siblings, and the younger Slayer quickly warmed up. That was about a year ago.

Now, at seventeen, Sophie seemed more confident and sure of herself as she and Brigit greeted Buffy and Giles. Sophie’s brother Allan and sister Sara were sitting at the kitchen table working on their homework. After the introductions had been made, Sara took herself over to the sofa in the family room and continued to work on homework while Allan put up his things to help Sophie prepare dinner.

Brigit led Buffy and Giles in to the study and closed the French doors behind them. “Sophie has a routine with her brother and sister in the evenings before she goes out for patrol that she rarely diverts from, so forgive her if she doesn’t join us until later.”

“We apologize for intruding on your time,” Giles responded.

“Business first.” Brigit replied with a shrug as she pulled out her notes on the bear-like demons’ activities in the area. She also retrieved a picture of the juvenile demon before they’d disposed of it. “A farmer had shot it. We tracked it to where it had fallen and Sophie put it out of its misery.”

Giles studied the photo and shook his head. It didn’t match anything he had seen before in his research and he shook his head in frustration.

“I didn’t recognize it either and my research came up with nothing,” Brigit said with a shake of her head. “The local farmers are calling them Reivers since their livestock goes missing.”

Buffy looked at Giles for an explanation.

“The Border Reivers raided sheep and cattle, among other things, along the Anglo-Scottish border for about four hundred years until the 17th Century. You’ll see that many of the older farms in the area still have remnants of fortifications that were built to protect them against the raiders,” he clarified.

“Thanks, Giles.” Turning back to Brigit, she asked, “Have you seen any of the adults?”

“Unfortunately, no, but one of the farmers described them as tall as one of the male brown bears he’d seen at a zoo once.”

Buffy’s dark green eyes grew wide. She knew male brown bears were upwards of seven to eight feet tall and weighed about seven hundred pounds, having fought the Chumash Indian who turned into a bear that Thanksgiving during her Freshman year at UC Sunnydale. Most bears were solitary, but all reports regarding these new demons was that they hunted as a pack, which suddenly made this mission much more dangerous than they’d originally thought.

Giles noticed her change in body language and cleared his throat before asking, “You said a farmer shot this juvenile.”

“Yeah, the hide is pretty thick, except in the neck area. We noticed that it had taken several shots to the left side, where the farmer had aimed for the lung, but the bullets didn’t fully penetrate. The shot to the neck pierced the skin and did some significant damage, but not enough to kill it outright,” Sophie recounted as she shut one of the French doors behind her. “Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes. Allan is finishing up for me. Hopefully you’ll be joining us? I know you’ll be going on to your B&B, but there is plenty.”

“Thank you, that would be lovely,” Giles answered for both of them.

“It’s the least we can do. I appreciate you both coming up here to dispose of these demons for me.” She looked back at her brother and sister through the glass panes. “This is a bit more than I am willing to take on when they still depend on me. Allan just turned fourteen and Sarah will be ten in two months.”

Buffy placed her arm around the younger Slayer. “You don’t have to do any of this, you know. You’re not obligated just because you have Slayer powers.”

“I know, but I’m the only one in this neck of the woods and if I don’t, there will be many other kids could lose their parents.”

“That can change too,” Giles suggested, his eyes meeting Brigit’s from across the desk. He knew of the other Watcher’s affection for her charge and the two younger children. It was that of an aunt to her favorite nieces and nephew. Brigit had often included notes on the Flemming siblings in her reports.

“Yeah, I know, but right now, I enjoy my job. I know I am making a difference,” Sophie responded.

“I get that, but don’t feel like you have to do it forever. We’ve got a couple of soon-to-be graduates that need a place to call home. Even if you don’t want to give it up, you can have some back up.”

Sophie smiled. “We can certainly talk about that. Might be nice to have some help around here.”

\-----------

Giles turned off the main road and onto the lane that led to their farmhouse B&B. The farm wasn’t anything like Buffy expected. They passed through a very old stone gate that was part of a larger building, which must have been part of a larger fortification against the Border Reivers. He parked the car within the courtyard near the farmhouse and as they were gathering up their bags from the back of the vehicle, they were greeted by their hosts Henry and Louise Dunn. Henry ran the farm with their son Geoffrey, while Lousie ran the Bed and Breakfast enterprise with a lady who lived closed by.

Louise was an amiable woman who enthusiastically imparted the history of the area and the farm while she showed them to their rooms and Giles happily asked all the appropriate questions to keep the conversation going. Buffy was ready to fall into bed as soon as Louise opened the door to show off the room. Her bed for the next few nights was a cosy four poster with an abundance of inviting pillows at the head.

“I’ll see you for breakfast at eight, if that works for you?” Louise asked her and Buffy nodded her reply. “Right then, there is a plate of shortbread on the vanity for a late night snack.”

Buffy said goodnight to Giles and Louise, a yawn interrupting her words as Louise closed the door to Buffy’s room behind her.

“Your room is just next door there, Mr Giles.”

“Thank you. I take it I have a plate of shortbread too?” he asked hopefully.

“Of course. The recipe has been in my family for generations and is a crowd pleaser. I know you are here on business, but do hope you and Ms. Summers enjoy your stay.”

“I am sure we will, thank you.”

His hostess left him to get settled and he looked about his room. It was a bit more masculine than the one Buffy was in, decorated in white and reddish hues rather than pink and white. He too, had a four poster bed, but there were fewer decorative pillows. Placing his suitcase on the luggage rack, he opened it up and pulled out a pair of sweats and his well worn Oxford hoodie before heading to the ensuite to get cleaned up and changed for bed.

It had been a long day of travel and research with Sophie and Brigit. They’d get a start after breakfast, driving around and surveying the countryside to see if they could find any recent activity from the bear-like Reiver demons.

\----------

Giles had received a call at breakfast stating the demons had hit a farm about twenty miles away. Besides a few sheep being taken, the demons had eviscerated a donkey, and unfortunately, the demons had claimed their first human victim too, one of the young farmhands who had been watching over the sheep since the attacks in the area had started.

As they hurried over to the farm, Buffy made a mark on the map with the latest attack. “Their lair must be local, Giles,” she proffered as she studied the topography. “There have only been two attacks that are outside of a twenty mile radius, and those were the first ones, which leads me to believe that they’ve settled in the area.”

“The area is rich with herds and flocks,” he replied. “They have their choice.”

“And they are pretty smart to not strike the same farm twice so far. Even if they do go back for more vittles, the change of behavior will come as a surprise.”

“With the death of the young man, the local police will be taking a closer look. We’ll need to be careful.”

“Agreed,” Buffy sighed. “It won’t be like the Sunnydale police. No bikers gangs high on PCP.”

“Gone are those days.”

“Thank god!”

“I’ll second that,” Giles said, turning onto the lane leading to the farmhouse. He much preferred being on the offensive side of the fight against evil as opposed to waiting, exposed on the Hellmouth for whatever evil it would draw towards them.

“The only trouble being that we’ll have to tread lightly with the Po-po.”

“Po-po?” he asked incredulously with a look of consternation clouding his face.

Buffy laughed. Giles was rather adorable when he navigated the world of pop culture vernacular and references. “Get with the times, Giles.”

“I’m hip… a-and down with the new slang,” he deadpanned, pulling up to the barn where several people had gathered. “Remember our cover story.”

“Yeah, yeah, I have my Def Leopard badge on me,” she replied with a wink as she released her seatbelt and hopped out of the Range Rover.

One of the perks of working for the new Joint Council was that the government covered their access needs. They literally had cover stories for their cover stories. It was all very James Bond, when she thought about it.

“It just makes sense with the death of the young man,” he responded quietly as he met up with her in front of the vehicle. They made their way to the group of farmers and police. “Good morning, I’m Rupert Giles and this is my colleague Ms Buffy Summers. Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs. We are here to investigate cause of the mauling.”

“I was wondering when you Defra folks would show up.” A blond man with a red beard and equally ruddy cheeks wearing a rumpled suit and Wellington boots stuck his hand out to greet them. “Detective Chief Inspector James Stewart.” 

“Good morning,” Giles returned, thankful for a more open and friendly DCI than he was usually apt to deal with down south. 

“Fair warning It’s not pretty,” DCI Stewart commented. “I’ll walk with you. The body just down near the stream. You can see the forensics team just past the trees there. ”

“Were there any witnesses?” Buffy asked.

“Not to the attack. The lad was out on his own. The other farmhands had gone into town for the night. If a person actually did this, they’re a right psycho,” the detective commented. “But the mauling patterns seem to match those that we found on the remains of a cow belonging to Adam Gordon and a sheep from the Riddle farm.” They walked a bit further. “You’re American?”

“Born and bred, but my veterinary internship brought me across the Atlantic and I ended up staying.”

DCI Stewart nodded. “I’m sure you’ve both seen some nasty sights, but I’ll be honest, this one is a rough one. I’ve seen it, so I’ll stop here if you don’t mind.”

Buffy and Giles continued down the field towards the little wooded area near along the bank of the stream. As they neared, they could see the blanket covering the body of the victim.

“You the animal specialists?” A lady in dark blue cover-alls asked as they approached the scene.

“Yes, we are,” Giles replied. “Rupert Giles. This is Buffy Summers.”

“I’m Angela Johnson. Come have a look and tell me what does this sort of damage.”

As she pulled back the blanket that covered the unfortunate farmhand, Giles had to swallow hard to keep from getting sick. He’d seen a lot of violence in his time, but the destruction of the body was intense. Buffy took a step back. As Slayer, gross was de rigueur, but the sight before her was beyond anything she had seen.

“Cover him back up,” Giles commanded, though his voice was low.

“Poor Alfie MacMillan was attacked up on the hill over there and then dragged through the stream for about one hundred meters before being dumped here.There’s no evidence of feeding, unlike the livestock we’ve encountered so far. Looks like razor sharp teeth and claws and immense strength. Our victim was over six feet tall and about 14 stone.”

Buffy looked at Giles.

“About 200 pounds,” he explained and she nodded.

“You American?” Angela asked.

“Pretty obvious, huh?” Buffy replied.

“California, I reckon,” The medical examiner gave her a knowing smile as Buffy’s eyes grew wide. “My brother and his family live in San Diego. I visit every year Christmas,” she explained. 

“Nice. I’m originally from L.A.”

“Funnily enough, I’ve never been. One day, I suppose. So, what do you think? What sort of animal does this?” Angela asked.

“Could be bears,” Buffy hedged. “I’d like to see some tracks to confirm.”

“Bears tend to be solitary. A few of the farmers who’ve lost livestock have said they’ve seen several running about together at night.”

“True. It could be a group of siblings that escaped from a zoo or circus or maybe the home of someone who owned them illegally,” she shrugged, trying to sound like the expert in wild animals she was impersonating as she and Giles followed Angela over to the stream bed.

“The paws _ are _ huge,” the examiner commented as she pointed out the demon tracks in the mud.

Giles squatted down and took a look. “Perhaps eight or so inches across,” he observed.

Buffy joined him in the investigation. The tracks looked similar enough to a bear’s. There were a few differences, but she could chalk that up to the slipperiness of the mud and the actual weight of the demon. “Yeah, that looks like a bear,” she agreed looking at Giles.

“I concur,” he stated with finality.

“I’ll add your assessment to my report, thank you,” Angela said. “If, you’ll excuse me, I need to speak with the inspector.”

Buffy and Giles rose from the ground and followed the demon tracks further down the stream before they took an immediate turn to the left and headed off into a clearing.

“What do you think?” Giles asked, shoving his hands into the pockets of his dark grey cargo pants.

“If they truly do hunt in packs, it headed back to it’s buddies after taking out poor Alfie.”

“Thankfully, it appears that they don’t have a taste for humans, but…” he trailed off.

“Yeah, that was the most gruesome attack I have ever seen, but it could have been way worse” Buffy replied solemnly. “And there will be more of that as the farmers will want to protect their stock.”

“I agree.”

“Let’s track it, see where it meets up with the pack. From there we can see what direction they’ve gone. They’ll head back to their lair with the sheep they took.”

Their investigation brought them to a one lane road near the edge of the farm where the tracks stopped.

“There is a definite intelligence to the Reivers,” Giles commented with a shake of his head. “They’ve either gone north or south along the road.”

“Let’s head back to the Rover. We can come back up here and head north for a while to see if we can pick up their tracks again. If not, we’ll head back south, see if we see anything that way before heading back to the B&B.”

“Solid plan.”

When they returned to their vehicle, they found DCI Stewart waiting for them. “Bears, huh?”

“Looks like,” Buffy stated neutrally.

“Uh huh.” He sounded skeptical, and he had every right to be, but if she had told them they were actually demons, he would toss them out of the investigation, effectively shutting down a source of information they might need it in the future. “We’ll start looking into missing bears.”

Giles gave him an official looking Defra business card with his mobile phone number on it. “If there is another attack, please give me a call. We need to stop these animals.”

\----------

The search north brought Buffy and Giles to a large field where the high summer grass had been trampled.

“That’s it!” Buffy exclaimed. “Pull over!”

Giles pulled the Range Rover onto the small shoulder enough to allow for any vehicles to pass him on the one-lane road. Buffy jumped out to investigate the field. “Oh gross!” she stated in disgust.

“What is it?” Giles called as he traipsed his way through the grasses over to her. “Oh, dear lord, the smell!” The stench induced his gag reflex and he looked around at the feeding ground, with several carcasses in various states of decay.

Buffy had covered her nose with the collar of her v-neck t-shirt. “Yeah, I think we’re onto something. The lair can’t be too far away.”

“Best to investigate at night when they are away.”

“Or they could be in a food coma and I could take them all out now.”

“I know you are anxious to-” He had to stop himself because he thought he might vomit. “Track the Reivers to their lair,” he finally finished when he got himself back under control. “But I really think the prudent thing to do would be to wait until tonight, find their lair, and scout it out whilst they are out hunting. Learn more about them so that you can… dear god, let’s go back to the car.” He turned quickly to leave. He was having real trouble with the smell of the rotting carcasses.

Buffy was used to horrific stenches from her various patrols over the years. This one, she had to admit was probably in the top five… okay, top three. Following her Watcher back to the car, she stated. “Giles, it can’t be more than a mile or two from here.”

He gasped for a full breath when he reached the SUV. “Yes, but which direction? You have 360 degrees on the compass to search.”

“All the reason to get started now,” she argued.

He wasn’t going to win. She was in full Slayer mode now. Relenting, he opened the back of the Rover and passed over her sword and a crossbow before pulling out one of each for him.

“Thanks, Giles.”

They took their search east, following the tracks, but lost the trail when they came to a river after a mile in, where the Reivers had decided to hide their tracks by walking in the river. They followed the river north for another mile, but didn’t find any more tracks before Buffy threw her hands up in the air and yelled out in frustration.

Giles rested his crossbow at his side and reached out to touch her shoulder. “We should be getting back. We only have a few hours before dark and we need to get dinner and strategize about our plan for tonight.”

His calm tone broke through her consternation and when her eyes caught his, she took a deep breath to relax. “You’re right. We don’t want to get caught out here and lose the light. I don’t know about you, but I took a lot of visual clues to get out here. Things will look different in the dark and the Reivers have the advantage of knowing the terrain.”

“Right,” he agreed.

“Besides, I’m hungry.”

“There’s a pub a couple miles from our B&B.”

“Let’s check it out. I bet they have haggis.”

“Just because we are in Scotland-”

“Have you had haggis?”

“Yes,” he replied as they turned to retrace their steps back to the Range Rover. “It’s an acquired taste and not the first thing I would choose on the menu. Besides, I’ve seen enough offal for one day.”

Buffy shuddered. “What  _ would  _ be your first choice?”

Giles turned to face her. “You are hungry, aren’t you?”

A slight blush crept over her cheeks and she looked down at the path in front of them. “Famished.”

“Well, you decided to ignore the porridge this morning-”

“They put  _ salt _ in it!” she complained. “Who puts  _ salt _ in oatmeal?” she asked incredulously.

“It’s porridge, not oatmeal,” he corrected.

“Okay, but porridge should be slightly sweetened with honey and have dried apricots and a little milk.”

“There was cream.”

“ _ Salt _ .”

He sighed.

“Besides, the eggs and bacon were fabulous,” she continued. “I didn’t need anything more. And it’s not my fault we missed lunch.”

He stopped and stared at her before turning fully around, his arms extended fully, and looking around at their surroundings in question.

“Okay… it is,” she relented. “But, be a happy Watcher. I’m doing my job! Tracking demons. And hopefully disposing of them soon.”

“Come on,” he chuckled, having teased her enough. He took the liberty of placing his hand on the small of her back for a moment to guide her back in the direction of their vehicle and was pleased when she wrapped her arm around his waist, and so he returned the gesture in kind by draping his arm across her shoulders as they navigated their way over the terrain.

\----------

“Damn, that ribeye was amazing! I can’t stop thinking about it. And the mashed potatoes...” Buffy reminisced with a look of pure joy on her face. “I can’t believe you forewent the steak for salmon after the day we’ve had,” Buffy chided as they leaned against the hood of their SUV watching over one of the nearby farms. During dinner they had added the locations of the most recent farm attack and the feeding ground to their map and decided that the farm next to the one they’d visited that morning was the most likely to get hit next.

“The locally sourced salmon was absolutely superb,” Gile defended. “The sauce was divine and the boiled potatoes and steamed green beans were seasoned perfectly with butter and salt. What more could I ask for?”

“You’ll be hungry again in an hour,” she commented with a shrug.

“I somehow think we got our roles reversed. Usually I am the one questioning your dinner choices.”

“Hey, I gotta make sure those Slayer fires are stoked and when I am working like this, I can chow down on a steak like a Reiver demon.” He made a disgusted noise at the imagery. “Yeah, okay, that was really gross, sorry about that, but I can pack away some food when I need to. You  _ know _ it helps to kick in that Slayer healing quickly should I need it.”

It wasn’t necessarily a prospect Giles wanted to think about. Buffy knew her job better than anyone. She was the best Slayer in over a century and, as far as Giles was concerned, the best Slayer in history and he was prepared to argue that with footnotes, endnotes, and the entire Council library’s collection of Watcher Diaries at his disposal as a primary source with whoever said otherwise. He could not, however, escape the simple fact that she had died twice and had been close to death more times than he could bear thinking about and, once again, they were facing a foe they knew very little about and had to neutralize as quickly as possible.

“Yes… umm…. I… uh...” His eyes met hers in the dark and he held them a heartbeat too long. “Do be careful,” he finally finding the words as the tension mounted between them. He cleared his throat and scanned the farm in front of them from their vantage point on the hill.

Buffy smiled. “I promise to be careful if you do,” she said, playfully shoving him with her shoulder.

Giles couldn’t help but return her smile. “I promise.”

“No heroics,” she continued.

He looked down at his shoes. He’d lay down his life for her if needed. “We’re just here to protect the livestock and learn more about the Reivers,” he stated, reiterating their plan. 

Buffy pushed herself from the vehicle. “Right. So, let’s get out there and do a little recon.”

They grabbed their weapons from the back, Buffy choosing a couple of daggers and a short sword. The demons’ vulnerability areas required her to get up close and personal. Giles strapped his sword to his back and grabbed his trusty crossbow with the reinforced metal-tipped bolts and followed her through a gate and into a vacant field.

“Beware of the cow pats,” he called softly to her as they followed the stone wall down to the lower field.

Dancing out the way, Buffy just missed one. “Ugh!”

The farmers had brought their livestock to the lower field for the night, which Buffy wasn’t sure was a wise decision. It was smaller and made it easier for the Reivers to round them up, but it was still better than putting them in the barn where the herd would stand no chance at survival.

“Down!” Giles said forcefully through gritted teeth as he quickly grabbed Buffy around the waist, trying to draw her down and out of view, but they started to fall and he twisted her out of the way, cradling her to him to keep her from hitting the wall. She’d tried to move off of him, but stopped when she realized she was straddling him. Her eyes met his in surprise, their noses almost touching and their shallow breaths mingling together. 

How many times had they ended up in a similar situation in training? They’d gotten over their self-consciousness and the embarrassment early on in their association. It was a part of their job, but things were different now. They’d been growing closer over the years, close enough that she had almost exposed her feelings for him in the gym the other night when she’d vented her frustration.

“Are you okay?” she whispered, her eyes searching his.

“Never better,” he replied in a hushed tone. Her hair radiated about her like a golden halo in the glow of the waxing gibbous moon, and he couldn’t stop himself from caressing her cheek before moving an errant strand from her face and tucking it behind her ear.

His touch had been unexpected, but she welcomed it, feeling a rush of adrenaline surge through her - a rush that also heightened her senses, and her attention was diverted to the sound of rustling off in the distance, suddenly bringing back to the urgency of their situation and the real reason she had found herself in her Watcher’s lap.

“Did you hear that?” she asked breathlessly, breaking eye contact with him and turning in the direction of the sound.

Giles bit back a moan. It was delicious agony having her so close and in such an intimate position. “Look to the southwest corner of the field,” he grunted as he attempted to maneuver his way out from underneath her.

She reluctantly moved off of him and peered over the wall. “Incoming bogey,” she said, getting back to business as she spotted the lone Reiver lurking along the outer perimeter of the stone fence along the lower field.

“Seems it’s doing its own bit of recon,” Giles ventured, taking a look for himself.

“Can you take it out from here?”

“We’re out of range, I’m afraid. We’ll need to get closer. Can you see any more? Any movement in that copse of trees to the east?” 

“Nothing,” she answered. “The cows are getting restless. They can tell it’s near.”

“I see."

Leaning back against the wall, she placed a hand on his forearm before suggesting, “I think we have to take it out.”

“I agree. It’s all yours. I’ll cover you. Did you see the outcrop of stones about 50 yards down?”

Buffy nodded.

“I’ll be in range there. Keep the Reiver to this side of the wallow pond. Beyond that, it will be out of range.”

“Gotcha.” She peered over the wall again. The demon had moved out of her sightline. She stood up and pulled the short sword from the sheath strapped to her back. The hunt was on and the blood coursed furiously through her veins. “Come on,” she urged.

Giles stood up and followed her down the hill until they reached the rocky outcrop that would serve as his hideaway to provide cover her should she need it. They stood in awkward silence, the words lost somewhere between them as the seriousness of the situation struck them. It had been a long time since they’d been on a hunt of this magnitude and they had no specific intel regarding battle tactics on this demon.

“I… uh… better get going,” Buffy said as she shifted. “We’ve got a herd to protect.”   
  


Giles grabbed her wrist as she turned to turned to leave and she quickly glanced down at his hand before returning her attention to him and tilting her head in question.

“Be careful, Buffy,” he stated simply, although there were a million more things he wanted to say.

“We already promised each other that,” she replied quietly.

“So we did.”

Slipping her hand in his, she squeezed it. “You too, Giles.”

He nodded. She held his hand as long as she could and then let her fingers trail down his until they lost touch when she moved out of range. His eyes never left her figure as she headed down into the lower pasture. The demon came back into view as it neared the herd of cows along the eastern stone wall and they all shifted as one nervously into the field. 

Buffy noticed the Reiver as well and crouched down to keep cover as she followed the wall down toward the herd. As she approached the pasture, she saw the demon jump the wall, having opportunistically targeted a calf who had been separated from the herd. “Shit!” she growled and started to run, hurdling the wall in front of her.

All of his senses came alive at once as his Slayer threw herself into battle and Giles lifted his crossbow to his shoulder, targeting the demon and taking aim. 

Agitated at the intruders in their pasture, the herd started to run and form a stampede. Giles lost track of the Reiver in the frenetic activity. He was able to keep his eyes on Buffy who quickly sheathed her sword, leapt over one cow, and vaulted over another. She landed in a clear area near the little calf, and reached for the dagger in its holster at her thigh. The demon found its way through the chaos and paced back and forth before her and the calf. 

“Come on,” he said to himself, willing the beast to hold still. Then it stopped it’s pacing and charged at Buffy and the calf. Having a direct line of site to the Reiver’s vulnerable area, Giles took aim, pulled the trigger, and watched as the bolt hit its target, stopping the demon in its tracks. Unfortunately, the bolt didn’t fully penetrate the thick hide and, while the Reiver was injured, it didn’t go down. “Damn!” he vocalized in frustration as he ran towards the field. He should have realized he wasn’t close enough. He should have factored in the demon’s natural defense. Taking up a position another thirty yards closer, Giles started to reload his crossbow.

Buffy stood before the calf, her dagger at the ready. The bolt was half lodged in the Reiver’s neck. The thing swayed a little before standing up on two legs and letting out a roar. She looked up at it. It was huge and intimidating, and really didn’t resemble a bear up close and personal. Falling back down onto all four feet, it started its charge. Buffy quickly countered, running towards it and, when she got close enough, she stepped aside and ducked low enough to thrust the dagger deep into its neck.

Giles watched as the demon staggered and fell to the ground. He remained vigilant, his crossbow at the ready. Buffy moved out of range, her adrenaline pumping. The cows were still agitated, but had calmed enough to gather together at the other end of the pasture. The little calf, sensing the threat had subsided, ran off to join the herd.

With a burst of energy that surprised both Buffy and Giles, the Reiver popped back up from it’s prone position on the ground and quickly limped over to the wall and scaled it. Even injured as gravely as it was, it was still fast. Buffy glanced up the hill looking for Giles before taking off after it, running in the direction of the feeding ground. Giles bet that the Reiver was heading back towards the lair, which meant that the two had to be near each other as they had suspected.

He tried to follow them, but it soon proved almost impossible with the head start they had. That and a series of large clouds had moved in and enveloped the moon, leaving him in almost total darkness. Grudgingly, he trudged back up the hill to the outcrop of rocks to keep watch over the herd. The cows were still restless from their ordeal, shaking their heads and snuffling loudly while pacing back and forth in their field. His agitation matched theirs as he leaned against the rocks to anxiously await Buffy’s return.

  
\- End of Part I


	2. Part 2

Buffy emerged from the woods an hour later and Giles let out a sigh of relief. Waiting for her return was always the hardest part of his job. When he noticed a pronounced limp in her gate, he hurried down the hill to give her hand.

“Buffy!” he called, closing the gap between them. She was a sorry sight, covered in dirt, her hair tousled, and her trousers and shirt had been torn in several areas. There was a cut on her left arm, but thankfully, it had already started to heal.

She looked up and flashed a tired grin as satisfaction twinkled in her eyes. “Hey, Giles.”

He gathered her into a hug, holding her tightly to him, and she melted into his embrace. “Are you alright?” he asked.

She heard both concern and relief in his voice. “Yeah, just… kinda tired.”

He pulled back to look at her. “Dare I ask?”

“It’s dead. I found a place to stash the carcass. Come on, let’s head back to the B&B. I need a shower.” She put her arm around his waist and leaned into him to take some of the weight off of her left leg.

“What happened?” he asked as they started up the hill.

“It almost made it to the feeding ground before collapsing. Gory details excluded.”

“I was starting to worry.”

“I saw you pacing. I think you were past the point of starting to worry.”

“Buffy-”

“I found the lair. It’s a cave.”

“Before or after you hurt your leg?”

“After,” she responded. “It’ll be fine in the morning.”

“Yes, but you are hurting now.”

She rolled her eyes for effect, but was inwardly pleased that he was so open with his concern for her. “The rest of the Reivers weren’t home. I think we can assume that they were out hunting elsewhere and that our lone demon was just scouting out their next target.”

“Could be. I am sure we will hear from DCI Stewart in the morning.”

Buffy yawned. They were almost to the top of the hill. “I think I’ll be sleeping in. You can investigate the scene.”

“I suppose I can go it alone in the morning.”

“By the way, I am fairly sure there are five of them, judging on the size of the lair and the size of the demons. Well, down to four now, although it could be three if we count the juvenile from earlier. There were two entrances to it, but I caused the smaller one to collapse. There is only one way in and one way out now.”

“Good thinking. How did you hurt your leg?”

“Didn’t see the hole on the way back and stepped in it. My foot got stuck and I fell, twisting it. It’ll be fine in the morning. Good thing I had that steak tonight,” she mused.

They were fifty yards from the vehicle now. Giles stopped and swept her up into his arms, determined to carry her the rest of the way. She circled her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulder, enjoying the warmth radiating off him. She felt safe and cared for in his arms, and when he placed her on the seat and reached over to buckle her in, she had to smile at the extra care her gave her.

By the time Giles had walked around the Rover and climbed into his seat, she had fallen asleep. It had been a long day and now she was back with him safe and sound, and she had even provided some much needed intel about the demon pack.

When he pulled into the courtyard of the farmhouse B&B, it was one in the morning. He had given Louise notice that they would be out late, but he hadn’t expected to come back so grungy. Well, he was presentable, but Buffy certainly wasn’t and he knew their hostess would be up waiting for them.

“Buffy,” he called softly as he gently shook her shoulder.

“Hmm?” she answered without opening her eyes.

“We’ve made it back.”

She stretched and took in a deep breath without opening her eyes. “Want to sleep,” she mumbled.

“I know. We’ll get you to bed shortly. How’s your ankle?”

“Still cranky.”

“Do you want me to carry you?”

“Mmm.”

He didn’t mind. Taking care of her was his privilege. He came around to the other side, unbuckled her seatbelt and gingerly lifted her out of the seat. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she snuggled into him and he held her a little tighter.

Louise had waited up for them and opened the door as they approached. “Is she all right, Mr. Giles?” she asked in concern.

“Had a bit of a fall I’m afraid, Mrs. Dunn,” he replied. “Twisted her ankle.”

“Take her up to her room. I’ll bring up some ice.”

“Thank you.”

“She’s sweet,” Buffy murmured into his neck as he carried her up the stairs.

“She is,” Giles agreed, focusing on getting her to her room.

Carefully setting her on the bed, he unlaced her boots and pulled them off. Buffy let out a groan of discomfort. “Sorry,” he said as he attempted to remove her socks without jostling her. Inspecting her ankle, he found that it was swollen, but not discolored. It would be back at full strength in the morning.

Louise entered the room with a tray of chamomile tea and her scrumptious shortbread, a couple of tablets for pain management, and a bag of ice covered by a tea towel. “How’s the patient?”

Buffy opened her eyes. “I’m okay. It hurts, but you don’t need to fuss.”

“Nonsense,” Louise dismissed, placing the tray down on the table in the far end of the room before disappearing into the bathroom and returning with a basin of warm water, a washcloth, and a glass of water. “I’ll hold breakfast for you until ten,” she said, setting the basin and glass down on the nightstand closest to Giles who had pulled a chair over to sit near her.

“Thank you for your help, Mrs Dunn,” Giles said sincerely, though his eyes never left his Slayer. Dipping the washcloth into the water, he wrung it out and started tenderly wiping away the dirt from her face.

Buffy laid back against the pillows, making a noise of agreement as their hostess bid them goodnight.

He turned his attentions to her arm where the cut had been to clean up the blood. “Do you want some tea or any shortbread?” he asked.

“No. I just want to sleep,” she responded.

Giles set the washcloth down in the bowl and handed her the tablets and a glass of water. “Take these and I will leave you alone to get some sleep.”

Her eyes met his. “You could stay,” she suggested.

Clearing his throat, Giles looked away, his mind racing with inappropriate thoughts. “I-I’m a light sleeper and you need to heal. We still have four Reivers ravaging the countryside,” he replied with what he hoped was appropriate professionalism.

She took the pills and the water from him. “Got a plan for that too,” she said before taking the pills. “We’ll talk about it in the morning.”

Retrieving the glass from her, he set it down on the nightstand before taking the basin into the bathroom and emptying it out. When he returned, her found her sleeping peacefully, so placed the extra blanket over her. “Sleep well, Buffy,” he whispered and turned off the light, silently closing the door behind him.

\----------

“Did the DCI call you this morning about any attacks overnight?” Buffy asked, stirring cream into her second cup of coffee.

“He didn’t call, but there was a report of a couple sheep having been taken from another farm a few miles west of here.”

“Just sheep? No human casualties?”

“No casualties,” he confirmed.

“That’s a relief.”

“So what’s your plan for the lair?” Giles asked her as she cut into her poached egg on toast and watched as the yolk ran over everything. She’d already wolfed downed a couple of sausages and the bowl of porridge that Louise had sweetened with honey and apricots, much to Buffy’s approval. He was in awe at her appetite.

“The Reivers should be sleeping during the day, so we catch them unaware and torch the lair. Torch it with flamethrowers, molotov cocktails, I don’t care, whatever gets the job done,” she shrugged.

“That would certainly do it.”

“Yeah,” she said tucking into the eggs. “I’m pretty certain you brought the flamethrowers.”

“I did,” he confirmed, taking a sip of his tea.

“Are you feeling better, dear?” Louise asked as she brought out another rasher of bacon for Buffy. She had been busy in the kitchen when Buffy and Giles had come down for breakfast and so they hadn’t seen her yet that morning, having instead, been served by the young woman who assisted her in running the B&B.

“Yes, thank you for helping me last night, Mrs Dunn.”

“My pleasure,” she replied. “Anything more for you, Mr Giles, more tea?”

“No, thank you.”

“Be careful, today, Missy,” Louise directed at Buffy.

“Yes, ma’am,” Buffy said sincerely, even though she knew she wouldn’t and that she had fully recovered from her injuries. After Louise went back into the kitchen, Buffy said, “I think we can wrap things up here today and head back home tomorrow.” Having said that, Buffy couldn’t help the sadness and disappointment that accompanied that idea. She had been enjoying the time alone with Giles, having him all to herself during this hunt.

Giles, too, felt a twinge of sadness that their time together was coming to a close. Of course, he wanted to eliminate the danger to the people and livestock in the surrounding area, but it also meant that they would return to their duties at the Academy and the Council where their time was shared with others.

“Sounds like we have a plan then,” he confirmed cooly, not wanting to let his disappointment show. “Do you think we can drive the Rover most of the way towards the lair or will we need to haul the flamethrowers in on foot?”

“We can drive it in part way. There is no way we can get it through the thickest area of the woods. Probably best not to drive it up the stream either.”

“No, we don’t want to disturb the trout population.”

Buffy laughed. “Don’t hurt the fishies?”

“My father was an avid fisherman,” he answered with a shrug as though that explained everything.

Standing up, she placed an affectionate hand on his shoulder. “Meet you at the car in twenty.”

Giles looked at her and nodded, decidedly missing the feel of her hand when she’d gone.

\----------

Approaching the lair on foot with the heavy flamethrowers on their backs was a slow process. They’d parked the SUV at the edge of the woods, but still had a half a mile or so to walk to the site.

“There,” Buffy pointed towards the cave as they came to a halt just before a clearing.

“I see it,” Giles answered. The entrance was just big enough to accommodate the demons. The grasses in the clearing had been trampled down and a path had been worn through entrance. “Well done on finding it in the dark last night.”

“Thanks, it felt good being on the hunt, challenging. I got to stretch those Slayer senses, which is something I don’t get to do very often in London,” she replied, taking off the flamethrower.

“What are you doing?”

“Going in for recon. We need to make sure they are at home. Don’t want to waste the fuel.”

He didn’t like the idea, but she was right. “I wish we knew definitively how many there are in the pack.”

“Hopefully we’ll have that answer soon enough.” She retrieved her trusty dagger from the sheath in her boot and smiled up at him. “Wish me luck,” she said with a wink.

Her good mood was contagious. “You won’t need it, but good luck anyway.”

“Those promises still hold,” she said, her eyes meeting his and conveying a sense of seriousness.

“Always,” he replied.

Acknowledging his reply with a nod, she directed, “Be ready on my return.”

He watched her approach the lair and suddenly all the optimism and camaraderie that he had sunk like the Titanic in the pit of his stomach. It wasn’t that he didn’t have confidence in her. He had that in spades, knowing she would do her job to the best of her ability. It was just that she was entering a confined space and possibly outmatched by at least four giant bear-like demons with supernatural strength and jaws that made easy work of cow femurs. Of course, there was also the pesky matter of his feelings for her.

“Come back to me, Buffy,” he said to himself as he leaned against a tree to watch for her.

A long ten minutes later, Buffy came running out of the cave, “Giles!” she called. “Giles, now!”

He pushed himself off the tree and ran into the clearing, pulling the gun from the side of the flamethrower pack as he advanced towards the entrance. As soon as Buffy passed him, he pulled the trigger, shooting the flame into the cave and watching as two demons retreated, trying to avoid the fire. He continued to shoot fiery death into the cave system when Buffy joined him with her pack.

When he was certain there was no way for the Reivers to push through the wall of fire, he signaled for them to stop. She looked at him and then at the cave entrance, satisfied with their work.

“How many?” he asked.

“Three,” she replied, taking off her flamethrower. “I had to dispose of one. It was on guard. Unfortunately, it didn’t go quickly or quietly. Hence the frenzied escape when the other two woke up and came after me.”

“Three,” he said, shaking his head, a nagging feeling in his gut telling him it wasn’t over.

“The total could’ve been five with the juvenile Sophie found,” she said, trying to be optimistic, but even she wasn’t buying it… for they were sitting ducks in the clearing. “Oh, shit!”

Giles turned in the direction she was looking. Standing at ten feet tall at the edge of the forest, was the leader of the pack. Black and shaggy, with orange glowing eyes - even in the daylight - razor sharp teeth and protruding fangs, and claws that could shred a person’s insides out with one swipe. Not to mention ugly. He hadn’t seen one up close before and it definitely wasn’t a cute and cuddly teddy bear.

It roared with rage and crouched down to all fours to attack. Giles knew his fuel tank was low, but he attempted to shoot fire at the beast anyway as it barreled towards them. The flame spewed and sputtered, before the weapon rendered itself useless. Quickly divesting himself of the pack, he dodged out of the way, scrambling towards the edge of the woods where he left his crossbow with the angry Reiver hot on his heels.

“Hey, Shaggy!” Buffy called, tossing a couple of rocks and hitting the demon in the head. It stopped and turned in her direction. “Come and get me!” she taunted. Once she had its attention, she took off running into the woods in the opposite direction from Giles.

“Buffy!” Giles yelled after her. “Buffy!” He found his crossbow and ran after them.

“No! Stay and keep watch over the fire!” she called back. “No heroics, Giles!”

He stopped, watching her lead the demon away from him and the clearing. Knowing she was right, that he needed to ensure that the fire did not spread beyond the cave, all he could do was voice his frustration, “Fuck!”

He sat down with a tree to his back and took a deep breath before leaning back against the trunk and looking up at the sky, invoking whatever deities might be out there to watch over his Slayer.

There wasn’t much for him to do. The fire remained in the cave system and wasn’t spreading, but the stench of burning Reiver flesh invaded his senses and he pulled his handkerchief from his left pocket to cover his nose and mouth. Scanning his surroundings, he hoped to see Buffy return, but after the minutes ticked over to an hour, he started to worry.

“Come on, Buffy,” he muttered as he surveyed the edge of the tree line. He was filled with a nervous energy that had him imagining the worst and it took all his self control not to run into the forest to find her. In an effort to pass the time, he gathered up the flamethrowers, his crossbow, and the few other supplies they had brought with them so that all they had to do when she came back was seal the cave and leave. Of course his efforts only helped another ten minutes pass and he sat back down against his tree. He checked his watch. In another fifteen minutes, he would go looking for her. The likelihood of injury was high and at this point he wasn’t worried about the fire anymore. It had retreated into the cave and wasn’t a threat to the surrounding area anymore.

Just when Giles gathered up his crossbow and readied himself to track her, he heard a rustling coming from the woods to his left. Instinctively he positioned himself into a defensive crouch, but when Buffy materialized through the tree line, dragging a very dead, ten-foot Reiver behind her, he dropped the crossbow and ran towards her. She spotted him and gave him a triumphant smile before rushing towards him, leaving the demon at the edge of the woodline.

Upon reaching her, he enveloped her into a huge hug, which she returned with equal fervor.

“I got it!” she beamed as she looked up at him.

“I see that!” he laughed.

“I lured it into a corner between two outcrops of rocks. It had nowhere to go. It put up one hell of a fight, though,” she recounted happily. “And look, not a scratch on me!”

She was simply radiant as she let go of him and twirled around for him to inspect her. She was a little winded, sweaty, and dirty, but she was right, there wasn’t a scratch on her. She’d bested the pack leader and come away unscathed.

He was so proud of her!

“Bloody brilliant!” he praised.

Buffy wrapped her arms around him again and gave him a squeeze. “Thank you for bringing me up here, for believing in the plan, and trusting me to do what needed to be done.”

“Of course,” he replied, pleased to have her back in his arms.

“You wanna help me get dispose of the thing?”

Giving her a look that very much said no, Giles sighed and reluctantly released her from his embrace. “Let’s get this thing back to its lair,” he acquiesced.

The fire in the cave burned white hot, but they managed to drag the carcass to the entrance and toss it into the fire, before returning to the middle of the clearing, where she put her arm around his waist as they kept vigil over the conflagration.

“What the hell is going on here?” An angry voice called to them. Giles recognized it as DCI Stewart’s voice.

They quickly broke apart, looking a little guilty, which probably wasn’t the best to look in front of the local Detective Chief Inspector, considering they’d started the fire and had a bunch of weapons at their disposal, including several that were illegal.

“Oh! Mr. Giles, Ms. Summers, the dynamic Defra Duo,” the inspector greeted as his eyes scanned the scene.

“Hi,” Buffy greeted nervously with a wave. Giles merely nodded.

“Care to explain what is going on here? I saw the smoke from the road and suspected a wildfire, but I can see that’s not the case.”

“Well, we-” Buffy began.

“Jesus, what is that stench?” the DCI asked, wrinkling his nose at the acrid smell.

“We had to… get rid of the… uh… bears,” Buffy replied lamely.

“With flamethrowers?” Stewart asked, eyeing the weapons in the clearing, though it was more a statement.

“Yes. Well, no. They were diseased, which made them overly aggressive. We didn’t want it spreading to other wildlife or livestock. There has been enough loss to the agricultural industry around here.” she explained, rallying with her new story. “There were just too many of them and they were big to move, so we brought out the flamethrowers.”

“It was the fastest solution,” Giles supplied.

The inspector raised an eyebrow before asking, “Standard Defra kit, are they?”

“Uh… we have papers for them back at the car.”

DCI Stewart sized him up, extremely skeptical of Giles' answer. “The... bears are no longer a threat?”

“We got them all,” Buffy replied, the proud grin once again appearing on her face.

“Good.” He walked over to the cave and peered inside while maintaining safe distance before returning to them. “Got a call from London about you. I must say it seemed highly unusual, but now, somehow, seeing the two of you bar-b-queing a bear cave like it’s not even a big deal for you, makes a bizarre sort of sense. I won’t be needing to see those papers. Just stay here and make sure the fire dies out.”

“Ugh! That could be tomorrow sometime,” Buffy whinged.

“As you Americans say: have a nice day!” the inspector answered evenly. “Bears!” he muttered, shaking his head as he left them.

“So he knows,” she said.

Shoving his hands deep into his pockets, Giles replied, “Seems so.”

“I wonder who spilled.”

“Doesn’t really matter,” he replied, leaning back against a tree. “He needs a plausible explanation for his report. Our cover has provided him with one.”

“True,” Buffy responded, as she sat down on the ground. “Come join me, Giles, it looks like we’re going to be stuck here for a while.”

“Why?”

“Uh… because… fire bad?” she responded, staring at him in disbelief.

Shrugging, he pushed himself from the tree, grabbed his bag of supplies, and headed over to the entrance of the cave where he busied himself, pulling ingredients from his bag and setting up a protective circle. When he was satisfied with his work, he whispered an incantation under his breath and flames shot out to the cave while the fire's colors changed to a blinding light before extinguishing all together moments later.

“What the _hell?_ ” Buffy muttered as she ran over to the cave to inspect it. She found it devoid of Reivers and practically pristine. Looking back at her Watcher with revered awe, she praised, “Okay, that was awesome! Who needs flamethrowers when you have skills like that?”

He laughed. “It’s an augmentation spell, not an incendiary spell, but it probably wouldn’t hurt to find a fire starting spell for next time.”

“Wait! Next time? We’re going hunting together again in the future?” she asked with surprise.

“I think this should be a regular thing, don’t you? It seems that a good hunt was clearly what you needed.”

Throwing her arms around him, Buffy sighed happily and returned, “Yeah, it’s bone deep satisfying.”

“I’m glad,” Giles said genuinely, giving her a quick hug and then removing himself from her hold. He was suddenly full of mixed emotions. They’d grown closer and experienced some intimate moments, which he’d been hoping would grow into something more, but perhaps Faith was right: excess energy and a lack of demon kills caused sexual frustration in Slayers. “Let’s grab our weapons and get out of here,” he proposed. “I don’t know about you, but I could use a shower and a pint or two afterward.”

“A shower is definitely in order,” she agreed. “And food! I could eat a cow.”

“I’m not sure the farmers would appreciate it, after the Reivers,” Giles smirked.

\----------

Buffy was in fine form at the pub later that evening. After consuming enough food to make a Reiver blanch, she’d challenged several of the regulars to shoot pool. Giles had opted to watch, nursing his third bitter ale. She’d worn a light breezy summer tank dress with a pair of high heeled sandals that he couldn’t help but notice showed off her perfectly tanned legs. Of course, he couldn’t help but notice when she’d bend over the table to set up and take her shots, either.

“Hey, Giles,” she greeted as she returned to their table.

“Three for three?” he asked.

“Yep. It’s not really fair to the locals though.” She sat down next to him in the booth. “One guy wants to play for money, but I’m not going to press my luck, he’s had quite a lot to drink. I don’t want to have to go all Slayer on him later. I did buy him and the others drinks, though, so there are no hard feelings.”

“Good plan,” Giles agreed before taking a swig of his ale.

“So, you wanna throw some darts? I’ll use my left hand.”

Not sure that makes it any more fair for me,” he chuckled. “I think I am good here. My vision is more... impared than usual.” He held up his beer glass in explanation. He wasn’t really affected, but he really didn’t want to throw darts… or do much of anything really.

“Okay, well, not sure why you went with the 7% ABV option,” she chided, covering his right hand with hers. “The traditional band out on the terrace sounds good. How about checking them out?”

“I think not,” he answered quickly, removing his hand from hers and taking a deep draught of his beer.

“Come on, we’re supposed to celebrating and you’re being all… mopey. I mean, here we are, no more Reivers, away from London and the kiddos, mom and dad can enjoy a night out!”

“Mum and dad?” His mind tried to process that bit of information without going to places it shouldn’t.

“You’ve never overheard the baby Slayers call us that?” Buffy laughed.

“No,” Giles admitted.

“It’s kind of funny, actually, and endearing,” she replied quietly. “So, is there nothing I can entice you to do to let loose a little and celebrate with me?” He voice was pouty and her lower lip quivered for effect.

He wasn’t ever going to win when she employed that tactic. Sitting up straight and looking her in they eye, he asked, “Buffy Summers, would you do me the honor of joining me for a traditional Scottish Cèilidh?”

She smiled widely and responded with southern accent, “Why, Rupert Giles, I thought you would never ask.” Then in her own voice added, “Seriously, I thought you would never ask.”

“I am sorry,” Giles apologized as they slid out of the booth. Placing his hand on the small of her back as they made their way out onto the terrace where the band was finishing up a Gaelic song. “I am a wee bit knackered from the spell, but that’s no excuse to put a damper on the celebrations.”

“Wee bit?” she teased. “Picking up the local lingo?”

“When in Scotland, I suppose,” he responded good-naturedly.

The ambiance was lovely, fairly lights strung everywhere and some natural torches lit along the edges. Overhead there was a pergola lining the length of the terrace, adorned with flowering clematis. It was beautiful and the atmosphere was festive, with lots of clapping and whooping as the bodhràn beat the rhythm of the reel and the fiddler and accordion player’s infectious melody propelled people to dance.

They found a couple of free stools along the far wall and sat down to watch the dancers.

“Would you like a drink?” Giles asked, leaning into her and raising his voice over the reel as it ended.

“Yeah! Whatever you’re having is fine,” she answered as the lead fiddler introduced the next song.

As he got up, a man and a woman came over, each grabbing their hands and dragging them onto the dance floor.

“Come on, you two!” the lady with fiery red hair laughed.

“I don’t know how!” Buffy protested.

“You don’t need to,” the male half of the couple answered. “Just watch and you’ll get the hang of it in no time,” he explained as they positioned themselves into the two lines facing facing one another, one for women and one for men. “I’m Angus, I work at Craigburn Farm,” he said introducing himself to her. When she looked at him blankly, he said, “We lost a bullock to the bears a few days ago.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. That whole business was terrible,” she said before turning her head back to find Giles. He was protesting with the woman as she pulled him onto the floor, but watched as he lost his resolve and accepted her invitation. There simply was no arguing with a redhead.

“Taken care of now,” Angus replied.

“I thought you locals called them Reivers.”

He laughed. “Aye, that we do.”

Giving him a warm smile, she introduced herself. “I’m Buffy.”

“I know.” Angus’ smile answered her own as they waited their turn to dance with the lead couple as they made their way down the line. “We all know who you and your partner are.”

Buffy supposed that Defra was an important government department for farming communities and gave it no more thought as she watched what the lead couples were doing before her partner reached out to take her hand and spin her around in between the two lines. As the dance progressed, she had twirled and danced with several men before finding herself partnered up with Giles, holding his gaze and turning around him for a count of four before moving back to Angus and continuing down the line. When the song ended, they were pulled into another with their partners, but this one was different, loud and fast and involving more intricate steps, but no one seemed to care that there were newbies trying their best to keep up and not quite getting it. All that mattered was that they were trying and enjoying themselves.

Giles couldn’t help but notice how much fun Buffy was having. She was laughing as she bounced through the turns and on the occasions they would meet up, she’d smile so brightly at him that he felt like he might burn up in her presence. Gone was the malaise, he had felt earlier in the night and he gave himself over to the euphoria of the event, thankful that they had been pulled onto the dance floor.

As the fourth dance ended, the fiddler announced that they were slowing the music down to allow everyone to catch their breath or go have a dram of scotch or three. Angus thanked her for joining him on the dance floor and for being a good sport and gallantly passed her hand to Giles before offering his elbow to his wife and heading over to the bar.

“Would you dance with me, Giles?” she asked.

“It would be my pleasure, Buffy,” he replied, taking her right hand in his left and placing his other on her back as he guided her into the closed position as the band started a slow song in three-quarter time.

Buffy closed the gap between them and looked up at him. “I love the waltz.”

“I do too,” he said as they started to move together. They kept eye contact for several seconds before he complimented her. “You are very graceful.”

“Thank you. It helps having a partner who knows how to lead.”

“You can thank my mum for that,” he noted. “As a twelve year old, I’d rather have been playing football or rugby.”

“Next time I see her,” she sighed before resting her head against her chest. “I’d say it was time well spent.”

Tucking their hands in against his chest, he whispered, “I rather think so too.”

The band played two more slow songs, which Buffy and Giles danced contentedly to in each other’s arms before the fiddler announced for everyone to grab a beverage of their choice. Buffy reluctantly relinquished her hold on Giles.

“I’ll get the drinks this time. What do you want?”

“Scotch with water,” he answered.

“Not neat?” she asked in surprise and he shook his head. “I’ll be back.”

The bartenders were busy as it clearly was last call, but when she returned with his whisky and her half pint of cider, the fiddler came to the microphone again, lifted his glass and said, “To Alfie MacMillan, you were the bravest of us all. Rest in peace, lad.”

“To Alfie!” the crowd on the terrace, including Buffy and Giles, returned, lifting their glasses.

“And to those that keep us safe,” the fiddler continued, with just the slightest nod in Buffy and Giles’ direction. The revellers raised their glasses in salute with several people calling out a grateful chorus of “Here, here!”

Two women joined the band up front as they began a Scottish lament, singing the haunting tune in Scots Gaelic. Buffy leaned back against Giles entranced by the harmonies and the sad beauty of the song and reached back to grab his hand.

He gladly held her hand and rested it against her waist, enjoying the feel of her against him once more. Taking another sip of his whisky, he felt her shake against him. Leaning down, he whispered, “Are you all right?”

“Yeah, I don’t know what they’re singing, but…”

Hearing the distress in her voice, Giles set his drink down on the nearby ledge and wrapped his other arm around her, holding her to him. “You don’t have to know Scots to understand,” he returned softly against her ear.

When the song ended, Giles handed Buffy his handkerchief and she took it gratefully, wiping the tears from her face. “That was… unbelievable. Poor Alfie,” she sniffed. “If only we’d gotten here a day or two earlier.”

“Come on,” he said sympathetically. “Let’s get back to the B&B. It’s a long drive home tomorrow.”

\----------

They started the walk back to the farmhouse, both of them quiet and contemplative. When Buffy bumped into him a second time, he draped his arm around her to help steer her on a straight path.

“I think I had one too many,” she explained slipping her arm around his waist.

He laughed. “Just one?”

“Shut up!” she giggled as she slapped his tummy.

“Oof!” he responded, instinctively grabbing her hand.

“Whimp,” she teased, stopping their progress as she looked up at him.

Gazing down on her fondly, he rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand and replied, “When being abused by my Slayer, yes.” God, she was beautiful: his goddess of the hunt, illuminated by the light of the moon.

“It’s a Watcher’s lot,” she shrugged, her voice low with teasing lilt to it.

“You don’t have to tell me,” Giles sighed as he gazed into her sylvan eyes.

Buffy slipped a little closer to him, the corners of her mouth twitching up into a nervous smile. “No,” she breathed. “But I could show you.”

A lazy, amused smile tugged at his lips and just as he was going to invite her to do just that, they were illuminated by the headlamps on a car that came to a stop next to them and they quickly let go of one another.

“Would you like a lift back to the farmhouse?” Henry Dunn, their host asked from behind the wheel. “It’s another mile and a half down the road from here.”

“Er, sure,” Buffy replied before adding sheepishly, “Apparently, I can’t walk a straight line right now anyway.” She quickly gave Giles a chagrined look at having been interrupted before getting into the back of the car.

“So you enjoyed the cèilidh then, did you?” Louise asked with a laugh.

“We did,” Giles answered, as he settled into the back next to Buffy.

“We saw you there,” Henry said with an approving smile as he pulled the car back onto the road.

“We didn’t see you,” Buffy replied apologetically.

“No need to worry yourselves over that. You were enjoying yourselves with the dancing and it was crowded. Practically the whole community was there,” Louise explained. “It was a great gathering and there was a nice salute to Alfie.”

“That was very nice,” Giles agreed. “He seemed to be well loved within the community.”

“Aye. He was. I went to school with his father. Good family. Hard working. A terrible loss,” Henry said, turning onto the lane to the farmhouse.

They were all quiet as Henry parked the car in the courtyard and they entered the house.

“Thank you for the ride,” Buffy said.

“Well, we couldn’t have you staggering home now, could we?” Henry replied with a fatherly, teasing wink.

“Henry Dunn, let the poor lass be!” Louise scolded before turning to Giles. “I take it you will be checking out after breakfast what with the bears no longer being a bother and all,” she said knowingly.

Giles cleared his throat before answering, “Yes, that’s right.”

“Well, we’ll send you off with a proper breakfast then. Good night to you both,” Louise said and turned in the direction of the private wing with her husband.

“Good night,” Buffy and Giles bid together.

They climbed the stairs that led to their rooms, reaching Buffy’s first. She turned and looked up at him. “Thank you for taking me on this hunt and for tonight.”

“You look relaxed,” he said softly.

“I am.”

“Good. That was rather the point of this expedition,” Giles teased good-naturedly. “And you got them all.”

“I did, the last one being the most satisfying.”

“The locals appreciated it.”

Buffy’s brows knitted together in thought, “That wasn’t weird to you? I mean, at first I thought the Defra cover was pretty good, but… I think they just knew the whole bear story was BS.”

“Some of these families have worked the land here for centuries. It’s possible stories have been passed down.” He smiled. “And now they have new one. But, bears or Reivers, you mitigated the threat. They are thankful and I’m proud to call you my partner.”

“Aww,” Buffy drawled out. “I couldn’t have done it without you, so thank you… again.”

They stood at her door regarding one another awkwardly. “Well,” he started. “Sleep well.”

“You too,” she responded.

Neither moved for a moment before Giles cleared his throat and looked away. “Yes, well, I’ll be headed to mine then.”

“Unless you want to come in for some tea. There’s a kettle and chamomile tea, and I am sure Mrs. Dunn left a plate of her scrumptious shortbread,” Buffy invited.

“Maybe some other time,” he declined. “It’s late.”

“Okay, yeah.” There was a note of disappointment in her voice and Giles wanted to kick himself at being the cause of it. He wasn’t really tired, but things had gotten a little heady between them several times during the evening and, while it might only be an invitation for tea and shortbread, they were both still a little drunk and their judgment slightly clouded.

He leaned down to kiss her cheek, hoping that would take the sting out of his refusal. “Good night, Buffy.”

The corners of her mouth tugged into a small smile and she inserted her key into the lock. “Good night, Giles,” she replied. Closing the door behind her, she leaned against it, let out a heavy sigh. It was going to be a long night.

Giles kept his eyes longingly on her door well after it was shut before expelling a loud breath, running his fingers in his hair, and grudgingly acknowledging that sleep would elude him that night.


	3. Part 3

On the trip back to London, Giles and Buffy had made sure to stop in Carlisle to see Sophie and Brigit and fill in the gaps on the Reivers’ characteristics, strengths, weaknesses, social tendencies, and battle tactics on the off chance that there might be another pack out there roaming the Scottish Lowlands and the Border region. Sophie and Brigit had agreed that more Slayers in the region could only be a good thing, however, under stipulation they must come with their own Watcher. Sophie was adamant about not sharing - something Buffy understood all too well as a young Slayer back in high school. These days, sharing Giles was more the norm as they routinely worked together training and teaching young Slayers at the Academy, but now she didn’t mind, he was hers when she needed him, and that, ultimately, was all that mattered.

“What are you thinking?” Giles asked. She had been quiet for several hours and, though her face was occasionally illuminated by the oncoming headlights, he could tell she was pensive. He heard her sigh and glanced over at her. “Buffy?”

At his gentle prodding, she answered, “While I am glad the Reivers are crispy critters, I just kinda wish we weren’t heading back so soon.”

“I know what you mean,” he replied regretfully. “Other than needing a little rest and relaxation now after a good riot and rampage, how are you feeling?”

“Right now? Definitely of the calm,” she answered truthfully.

He laughed at her turn of phrase. “Good.”

“How about you?” she asked, turning in her seat to face him.

“What do you mean?”   
  


“It’s a simple question, Giles, how are  _ you _ feeling?”

He shrugged as he switched on the indicator to pass a slower moving vehicle. “Tired. It’s been a long week. Several late nights and this pissing rain isn’t helping anything.”

“My poor Watcher,” she sympathized, placing her hand over his on the gear lever and squeezed.

“Indeed.”

She didn’t move it until he turned onto the street of her row house some forty-five minutes later when he had to reverse into a parallel parking spot several doors down from hers and placed his left hand on the back of her headrest.

“This was lucky,” she stated. “Usually by this time of night, you have to park several streets over.”

The rain was still coming down in sheets and Giles got out of the car, opened his umbrella and quickly walked around the car to open Buffy’s door, gallantly offering his hand and keeping the umbrella centered over her. “I’ll walk you to your door and then come back for your things,” he said.

“I can grab them.”

He gave her a stern look that said she’d do no such thing and she agreed to let him have his way on the question of the luggage. By the time they reached the door and Buffy opened it, Giles was half drowned. He’d managed to keep her mostly dry, but at his own expense. Handing her the umbrella, he quickly darted back out into the downpour to retrieve her bags.

“Oh, boy,” she laughed with amusement upon his return. “You look like a drowned… well, a drowned something. Peel yourself out of your things and I’ll get you a towel. I think some of Xander’s t-shirts and sweatpants are still here from his last visit.”

“Really, Buffy, I appreciate it, but I am already drenched. I’ll just head home now.”

“Giles, it’s very late and raining a whole ark outside. I know you’re all Mr. Polite British Guy and all and you don’t live that far away, but be sensible. I have two unoccupied guest rooms, some dry male clothing, and all of your favorite teas stocked.”

He gave her a look of thanks. He was so ready to be off the road after several hours of night driving through a storm that had gripped the country. “When you put it that way, how can I refuse?”

“You really can’t. Now strip, and I’ll be back with that towel and the clothes.”

Shaking his head, he watched her bound off up the stairs, wondering to himself about how she’d react if he truly did strip down to nothing and stood there waiting for her in the altogether. It would certainly cause a stir. ‘In more ways than one,” he thought in bemusement.

He took off his jacket and toed off his shoes before pulling his dripping socks off. Next he peeled off his t-shirt and used it to towel off his hair since it was dripping into his eyes.

“Hey,” Buffy greeted softly so as not to startle him. “I really expected to find you here the way I left you… soaking and dripping onto the rug.”

“Yes, well, I’m still dripping onto the rug, but I know when to follow my Slayer’s orders,” he replied, reaching for the towel while Buffy set the clothes down on the bench near the door.

“Good! My Watcher needs to set the example for all Slayers,” she stated softly, noticing his broad chest and strong arm and shoulder muscles as he dried off. Muscles that wielded broad swords and hefted crossbows for her. Muscles that hauled weapons chests and dragged demons to their fiery graves for her. Muscles that carried her when she was injured and exhausted. 

“I think it best that we not let the younglings in on that secret yet. Teenagers are insufferable know-it-alls to begin with,” he suggested.

“Umm, yeah,” Buffy agreed distractedly. “So... what kind of tea would you like? I’ll go put the kettle on.”

“Something soothing, I think. You choose.”

“Okay.”

After changing into the clothes Buffy had brought down for him, Giles joined her in the kitchen where he caught the aroma of flora notes brewing. “Chamomile and Lavender?”

“The soothingest,” she answered as he took their mugs and bought them over to the table. “It needs to steep a little longer. Unfortunately, I don’t have any of Mrs. Dunn’s famous shortbread.”

“I do,” he replied and she raised an eyebrow at him to explain himself. “She gave me a large tin of it upon checking out.”

“What? No love for the Slayer?” she asked, her brows knitted together in consternation.

“I am sure it’s meant to be a gift to the both of us. You were still gathering your things in your room at the time.”

Buffy seemed satisfied with that answer. “I bet it’s still in the car, isn’t it?”

“Ah. Good point.”

Looking out the window, Buffy sighed. “It’s not letting up at all.”

“Nothing for it then,” Giles shrugged, removing the bag from his tea and blowing the steam from the cup before taking a sip. “Thank you for inviting me to stay.”

They talked quietly about the trip north, their schedules for the coming week, and came to an agreement about sending up a couple of their recent Academy grads, Amy Smith and Adaku Okoye, and their Watcher Michael Everton-Dawes to help Sophie and Brigit in and around Carlisle and the border region. The latter was an easy decision. Amy and Adaku were inseparable the moment they met two years ago and had a friendly rivalry throughout their tenure at the Academy, but above all, after learning each other’s weaknesses and strengths, they ultimately formed a partnership that was unrivaled during their tenure.

Finishing her tea, Buffy sighed contentedly. “You know, this is really nice.”

“It is,” he agreed, swirling the last of his tea in his mug.

“I hope we still have moments like this when we’re pushing walkers to get around,” she said wistfully as she reached out and covered his free hand with hers.

He moved his hand so that his thumb stroked hers and gave her a gentle smile. “There’s an image for you,” he replied before looking down at their joined hands and threading his fingers between hers. “I am sure you’ll be as lovely as you are now.”

Buffy wasn’t sure how to react. It was the first time he’d ever said something like that. Of course, he’d tell her she looked beautiful if she wore something nice, but he’d never given her such a compliment before.

“I’ll just be happy to have all my teeth,” Giles continued, breaking the tension and removing his hand from hers as he stood and collected their mugs. Having placed them in the sink, he yawned and looked at the clock on her stove.

“I guess it’s that time,” she agreed, turning out the light before they made their way upstairs. She led him to the guest room. “The bed is already made up with fresh sheets. There are clean towels and a new toothbrush and toothpaste on the sink for you,” she said, gazing up at him.

“Thank you,” he said gratefully, his eyes holding hers.

He looked so casual leaning against the door jam in the soft grey t-shirt and navy sweats, his feet bare, and his hair having dried wildly without the aid of a brush. And though he was downright sexy and she was having an even harder time saying good night than she had the previous evening, it felt like he just belonged there… with her.

“Well, I’m… uh… I’m just next door… as you know… because you been here before.” Groaning internally, Buffy wanted to kick herself for allowing herself to get all flustered, but things were getting pretty heated between them again. “If you need anything… just knock.”

“I will. Good night, Buffy.”

Standing on the tips of her toes, Buffy placed a lingering kiss on his cheek near the corner of his mouth. “Good night, Giles.”  
  


He watched her as she entered her room and closed the door behind her before entering the bathroom. It seemed like his entire body, led by his treacherous heart, had been yelling at him to kiss her. And he wasn’t clueless, he knew it was what Buffy wanted too, but he wanted to give it time. They’d just finished up an intense hunt that culminated with an extreme emotional high, especially for her, and if the feelings they were experiencing for one another were meant to be, then they would be there in a week or so when things resumed back to normal for them.

After washing his face and brushing his teeth, Giles headed back to his room and flopped down on the bed. Of the two guest bedrooms on the floor, it was the more masculine, having been decorated in navy and forest green with light cherry wood furniture. Dawn’s room was just above his as was the “Scooby Lounge,” but she was away with friends touring Italy over the summer holidays before starting university for the autumn term.

Sleep was hard to come by and after tossing and turning in the bed and trying to relax enough to fall asleep, Giles decided he needed a drink of water and, leaving his glasses on the nightstand, got up to go to the bathroom. Noticing the lights were on downstairs, he quietly made his way to the ground floor where he found Buffy sitting in the kitchen in a pink camisole top and white, pink, and grey plaid pyjama bottoms with a mug of warm herbal tea, looking out over the darkened garden.

“Can’t sleep either?” he asked quietly, rubbing the back of his neck as he entered the room.

She turned to look at him, her face reflecting her unhappiness.

“Is everything okay?” he asked with concern as he quickly sat down at the table next to her.

“I guess,” she replied with a shrug.

“Talk to me?” he entreated as he reached for her hand, but before he could, she stood up and moved toward the french doors that opened to the garden and wrapped her arms around herself. He placed his hands in his lap and waited for her to say something, if she would at all. The storm still raged outside and the gutters had a hard time keeping up with the excess water as it overflowed the channels, and the only sound invading the silence between them was that of sharp slapping as water hit the flagstones on the patio just outside the doors. After several long minutes, he moved to get up and said, “If you’d rather be alone-”

“That’s just it!” she interrupted before turning to face him. “I don’t want to be alone!”

“Okay…” he replied tentatively, not really knowing how to respond.

Shaking her head, she admitted, “And I don’t feel calm or relaxed or settled...”

“Oh…” Suddenly all his nerve endings danced across his skin and his mind reeled back to the conversation in the gym, to his frustrated Slayer with excess energy to burn and a desire for sex with a regular lover or to have a husband and a family, or just a deeply satisifying, damned good hunt. 

“Well, I do… did… whatever, but not... because I took out a pack of demons.” She leaned her head against the glass clearly exasperated with not being able to articulate what she was feeling. Her wide green eyes met his in distress.

“D-did?” he asked with concern.

“I don’t know…” she answered honestly.

“You can tell me anything, Buffy, you know my regard for you will never change,” he promised.

“Regard,” she muttered and turned back towards the doors. 

Apparently he’d said the wrong thing because she immediately closed herself off from him. Rising from his chair, he walked over to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Buffy,” he said, his voice low. 

She twisted away from his touch. She couldn’t think clearly with him so close. Not that she was able to think clearly in the moment at all.

Giles couldn’t help but feel stung by her actions and took a step back to give her some distance. 

Seeing the hurt in his pale green eyes, Buffy sighed and reached for his hand, taking it in hers. “I’m sorry. I just…” she shrugged, shook her head, and looked down at his bare feet.

“Hey,” he murmured quietly, bending his knees and tilting his head to look her in the eyes. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”

She let out a frustrated breath and let go of his hand before crossing her arms over her chest. Her shoulders sloped inwards in self-defeat as he turned to look out into the darkness again. “I don’t want this to be over,” she finally said.

“I’ll search the reports and find something for us to hunt next weekend.”

Men were so obtuse. She pivoted back around to face him. “Jesus, Giles.  _ Really? _ ”

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his sweats and blinked at her myopically.

“I don’t want  _ this _ to end!” she explained as she gestured between them. “I’ve been trying to figure out a way to tell you without…” Shaking her head while staring at the ceiling, she tried to muster some courage. “Without you thinking it’s just about… Ugh!” she growled and threw her hands up.

Giles leaned back against the table, giving her space to try and work through her emotions to say what it was she needed to tell him.

After a few long moments, Buffy ran her fingers through her hair to push it out of her face before starting again more calmly, “I feel settled when I’m with  _ you _ ,” she finally admitted, holding his gaze. “Whether it’s travelling in the car together and working through a strategic plan, or torching demons in their lair and sharing the victory...” Her eyes darted away for a moment and she bit her lip before returning to his gaze. “Or holding on to you on the back of your motorcycle, or slow dancing, or flirting,” she signed wistfully. “Or you taking care of me when I am hurt and tired, or holding me in your arms to comfort me when I’m upset. Just enjoying the quiet moments together… that’s when I’m settled.”

Taking in a shuddering breath, Giles made a move towards her, but she held out her hand and he stopped.

“I… don’t know exactly how you feel, but-”

“I wouldn’t toy with your emotions,” he interjected. “Buffy-”

_ “Please,  _ GIles,” she interrupted. “Let me get through this. I  _ need _ to get through this.” Her eyes held his as she entreated him to let her finish and he nodded for her to continue. “We make a great team. We always have. The hunt… don’t get me wrong, the hunt was satisfying at the primal level. It felt good to be the alpha Slayer doing what I was Called to do, but… like sex without someone I love, those highs are fleeting and what I am ultimately looking for is something more... permanent _.” _

She approached him, once again taking his hand in hers, this time lacing their fingers together. Both looked down at their joined hands, their breathing shallow in anticipation, Giles not knowing whether he should say something or let her continue, and Buffy gauging whether to take that final leap.

Gently placing his fingers beneath her chin, Giles lifted her head to look at him, his jade green eyes filled with tender regard for the woman baring her soul before him. “I think we are both looking for permanence,” he said softly. “I had wanted to wait a few days to give us time to reflect on the hunt and where we stand with one another, but I don’t think that is necessary.”

“Giles-”

He moved a finger over her lips and shook his head before tracing her bottom lip with the tip of his finger. Her lips felt like velvet and he wanted to taste them.  He raised his eyes to meet hers, finding that longing had replaced frustration and love, the uncertainty. Letting go of her hand, he brought both of his up to capture her face between them as he gently guided her towards him and met her half way. The anticipation was killing him, but he wanted to savor the moment, lightly rubbing his nose along hers, pressing their foreheads together. The intimacy of the moment grew as they shared the same space and breathed the same air. Slowly his lips finally met hers in a series of soft, sensuous kisses.

“I love you,” she breathed when he started to kiss down her jawline.

Her words stopped him and he lifted his head to look at her, a small smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. “Say it again,” he requested, the laugh lines around his eyes pronounced with happiness.

“I love you,” she repeated.

His expression softened and he pulled her towards him, wrapping his arms around her. Buffy melted into his embrace, closing her eyes to the solid reality of being held by him.

“God, how I love you,” he whispered against her ear.

Buffy tried to hold back the emotional tide, but things had been rather intense and the relief of knowing that Giles felt the same way and that they weren’t going to let anything get in the way, came crashing down and a couple of tears escaped her lashes.

He felt her shudder and backed away to look at her. Wiping away a droplet, he asked, “Happy tears?” 

Nodding, she said, “I don’t think I’ll ever tire of hearing you say you love me.” 

“I’ll never tire of telling you,” he promised. “I love you, Buffy.”

“I’m such a mess,” she lamented as she wiped her eyes with the backs of her hands.

“You look lovely,” Giles said, leaning down to kiss her again, softly at first, but then Buffy ran her hands up over his chest, around his neck, and up into his hair as she took control of the kiss, coaxing his mouth open and introducing her tongue to his.

His hands wandered down her arms, over her back and down to her backside, where he squeezed her ass and pressed her firmly against him. He was more than half hard and rapidly becoming more interested as they touched and teased one another, becoming acquainted with each other’s bodies in a a more intimate way than they had before as partners, sparring together and patching one another up after battles.

He loved her soft sighs and the sharp intakes of breath as he found the more sensitive spots at the junction of her neck, along her torso at the edge of her pyjama bottoms, and along the swell of her breast. He longed to take one of her pert nipples gently between his teeth and flick his tongue over it, but he wasn’t quite ready to escalate the tender exploration they were enjoying at the moment. 

Buffy pushed his t-shirt up and ran her hands over his firm torso before checking out his pecs and shoulders. She savored the feel of the soft hair and the raw strength of him and redoubled her efforts as she surveyed the muscles in his back before trailing her fingers beneath his sweats to his rear. She was pleasantly surprised to find that he wasn’t wearing anything beneath the sweatpants because Giles had a fantastic ass and she had wanted to explore that area of his anatomy for longer than she’d care to admit. Dragging her nails over the cleft between his cheeks caused him to thrust against her, piquing her curiosity and causing her already shallow breathing to become more erratic.

She moved her attentions to his hot, hard shaft, her fingers gently mapping out the contours as her thumb smoothed out a bead of precum over the tip. He let out a whimper of delight and thrust into her hand, wanting more.

Spurred on by his reaction, Buffy whispered into his ear, “I love your cock, Giles. God, you are so thick and hard.” Wrapping her hand around his shaft, she gave him a gentle squeeze. “You’ve got me so wet.”

Giles crashed his lips down on hers, his tongue invading her mouth. He loved that she wasn’t afraid to talk to him, to tell him what she liked and how she felt. Breaking their kiss, Giles nipped at her collar bone before bringing his mouth up to her ear. “Keep that up and I  _ will _ take you up against the wall and fuck you until you can’t stand up,” he growled.

“I want you,” she replied, her body reacting to his efforts as he moved one hand over her hip to the junction between her legs. He expertly applied some pressure just where she needed it and she shifted to allow him better access. His fingers slipped along the fabric of her pyjamas and caressed the heated areas within.

He smiled to himself as she started to move against his hand. “You are so wet, my love, and so, so hot.”

“I’m so ready for you. For this,” she answered. “Let’s go to bed.”

Giles picked her up in a bridal carry, and she settled her head beneath his chin. “Do you, umm, do you have condoms?” he asked. “If not, I have some in my bag… out in the Rover.”

“Yeah. In the drawer of my nightstand.”

“Oh good,” he said carrying her over to the stairs and beginning the trek up.

“You packed condoms in your suitcase?” she asked incredulously.

He laughed. “Well, you did sort of suggest… in the gym... not that I was expecting, but I… came prepared. Weapons chest, first aid kit-”

“Flamethrower,” Buffy giggled. “Condoms.”

“Just so,” he replied as he placed her on her bed. He hadn’t been in her room since he helped her move in a little over a year ago when she’d finally decided to settle down in London. Up until that time, she and Dawn had been renting a flat in Southwark since they’d all left California four months after the destruction of Sunnydale. He approved of the soft sage and grey-blue color scheme. It went well with her modern furniture with the dark espresso wood stain.

Buffy pushed herself back onto the bed and rested against the pillows. Giles stood at the edge of the bed regarding her. Sitting back up, she caught his eyes and held his gaze while slowly removing her silk camisole.

“Are you going to join me or do I have to do this all myself?”

“Oh, I have no issues watching,” he replied with a smirk.

“Uh huh. Funny,” she said, as she ran her fingertips lightly over her torso and up over her breast, before lazily running her middle finger around and over her taut, pink nipple.

“God,” Giles groaned and decided he’d had enough of being passive. He pulled his t-shirt off and dropped his sweats to the floor before crawling up the bed to meet her, pushing her legs apart and settling between them before taking her lips in a long, sultry, open-mouth kiss. Breaking the kiss, he trailed his lips down her neck and over the swell of her breast before tracing her sensitive, pert nipple with the tip of his tongue.

“Jesus, Giles, suck it… please,” she begged and as he complied with her request, she ran her hands through his soft hair, holding his head in place and licked and sucked at her breast. She ground herself against him, needing to feel his skin against hers, but she was frustrated by the barrier of her pyjama bottoms.

Letting go of his head, she bucked beneath him as she tried to remove her pants. Understanding her need, Giles placed one last kiss between her breasts before moving to her side and stripping her of the pink plaid pyjamas.

“Better now?” he asked knowingly, disposing of the garment over the side of the bed. As he lightly trailed his fingers over her hips, he grazed an extremely tender spot and she whimpered loudly as her body shuddered. “You are so beautiful, Buffy, so sensitive,” he whispered, entranced by her reactions to the slightest touches in that area. Slipping his fingers between the warmth of her folds, he added, “So ready.”

He circled the delicate nub with his index and fore fingers before raising himself up on his elbow and whispered into her ear, “I can’t wait to fill you and feel you surround me, grabbing at my cock as you meet me thrust for thrust,” he said, applying more pressure.

“Yes!” she hissed, her breathing erratic as she moved against his fingers trying to find the right pressure to make her come.

“Do you want to come now? Or with me?” he asked.

“Both,” she whimpered. “Please.”

Slipping back between her legs, Giles replaced his fingers with his mouth, teasing her with his tongue.

“Oh god!” she called, as she started to grind herself against his mouth. “Yes!” she encouraged when he started to suck and lick at her clit, and she came hard when he inserted two fingers into her channel, curling them over the sweet, hypersensitive bundle of nerves concealed within.

Moving from between her legs, Giles settled next to her on the bed and pulled her close, holding her through the convulsions and aftershocks, kissing her hair and telling her how much he loved her and how magnificent she was in the throes of ecstacy.

Caressing his sides and torso as she came down, Buffy lifted her head to look at him. “That was amazing, thank you.”

“My pleasure,” he replied.

“No, I think it was all mine,” she giggled before placing a soft kiss on his lips. “I love you,” she said as she kissed his way down his neck and over his chest before nipping at a tight nipple. Straddling his hips, she rubbed herself along his erection.

“Christ, Buffy!” he ground out as he placed his hands on her hips. “I want to be in you.”

Reaching into the nightstand drawer, she pulled out a condom and removed it from its packet. He took it from her and expertly rolled it over his cock. Positioning herself over him, her green gaze met his.

“Giles,” she breathed, not really knowing how to express the emotions she was feeling, but a serene smile pulled at the corners of her soft pink lips.

“I know,” he replied, reaching up and brushing the backs of his fingers along her cheek before moving his hand to the back of her neck and drawing her down for a long and languid kiss which was then followed by several little teasing kisses before she grew impatient and rolled her hips, slowly guiding him into her warm depths. 

Savoring the feeling of oneness, Buffy and Giles shared another string of sensual, loving kisses and caresses before she started to undulate against him. He enjoyed watching her take her pleasure from him, rocking against him, her inner muscles grabbing and releasing him while her hands wandered over his stomach and chest, her fingers lightly pinching and pulling at his nipples.

As she dictated the pace, Giles, too, took pleasure in touching her, running his hands along her sides and over her back, grabbing her hips to maintain her cadence, and sitting upright to nip and lave at her breasts when she arched her back.

“Giles,” she whimpered.

“Yes, love?” he asked.

“I need… you.”

He met her thrust for thrust, but could see the toll it was taking. She was close, but unable to maintain a satisfying rhythm. Licking his thumb, he reached between them and stroked her clit, watching her rally her efforts before he latched onto her nipple and sucked hard. Within moments, she came against him, crying out his name, and he quickly rolled them over, thrusting into her until he, too, tumbled over the edge.

Reaching for the lamp on the nightstand, Giles extinguished the light and gathered Buffy to him and, as he placed a loving kiss on her forehead, she let out a little noise of contentment and snuggled up against him, resting her head in the crook of his shoulder.

“Love you,” she murmured.

“I love you too,” he answered. “Sleep well.”

\---------- 

It was well past noon when Giles woke, his body wrapped around Buffy’s, snuggled beneath the summer weight duvet. He stretched against her and a certain enthusiastic part of his anatomy poked at her backside.

A lazy humming sound escaped Buffy’s throat and she rolled over onto her other side to face him, though her eyes remained closed. “Don’t wake me from this amazing dream,” she said.

“Good afternoon, darling,” he greeted, his lips meeting hers in a tender salute.

“Mmm. I could get used to this,” she said, opening her eyes, and taking in his handsome face. “Waking up with you every day.”

“As could I,” he agreed with a smile.

“Is it too early to talk about you moving in?” At the widening of his eyes in surprise, she back-peddled and said, “I mean, I could just clear out a drawer so you wouldn’t have to wear Xander’s things. It would be kind of awkward when he comes to visit if he finds you in his sweats. Why do they let me talk before coffee? Forget I said anything,” she babbled.

Giles lived in an old flat over the administration offices on the Academy grounds. It wasn’t ideal, but he’d made do with the accommodation. He’d been meaning to find his own place for a while now, but the timing never quite worked out between teaching, researching prophecies and new threats, patrol, and other special projects for the Council. He supposed he could look on the weekends, but that was when he disengaged from his Watcher duties and hopped on his motorbike or into his car and found something to do that took him away from the pressures of his calling.

Giles raised himself up onto his elbow and caressed her cheek. “In some relationships it might be too early,” he answered and her mortified expression turned to one of surprise. “But, we’ve known each other for long enough to know what is right for us.”

“Does that mean you will move in? Or… do you want a drawer?”

He laughed. “If you will have me, I’ll take you up on that offer of moving in… and not because I am currently living in that dingy flat, although this is quite the step up.”

“You best be ready, mister, because I’m about to have you again... and with you living here, I’ll have your hot bod on tap,” she said, joining in his mirth as she laughed.

“Saucy wench!” he exclaimed as he pulled her to him and kissed her thoroughly.

After the kiss ended, Buffy snuggled happily into his embrace and let out a contented sigh. “So this is what settled feels like,” she said. “I like it.”

“So do I, love,” Giles agreed, his fingers caressing hers. “So do I.”

  
\-----The End.  
  



End file.
